Zero Gravity
by Sugarbubbleslove
Summary: It was supposed to be a simple quest to heal. It was supposed to be a simple pick-up. Then they learn - nothing is ever simple when it comes to them. (A AU regarding ME2)
1. Chapter 1: Static in my Head

Title: Zero Gravity

Characters: ME2 Crew

Rating: High Teen

Disclaimer: I do not own anyone/anything from the forum Mass Effect. Bioware owns Mass Effect and its characters. There is no copyright infringement intended. I do not make any profit/money or take any credit.

Summary: _It was supposed to be a simple quest to heal_. **It was supposed to be a simple pick-up.** Then they learn - nothing is ever simple when it comes to them.

Timeline: ME2 – AU (Regarding Jack's Recruitment Mission - sorry)

Warning: AU, Violence, little head-canons

Author's Notes: A Tumblr post inspired this where someone had admitted seeing ME2 trailer had made them think Kaidan was going to be the biotic member and my brain ran away with it.

Be warned – it is only **TWO** parts (at the moment), I **may** do more but that just depends if I can figure out a direction.

Chapter 1: Static in my Head

_Breathe_. That was the first thing that came to his mind as he inhaled sharply. His fingers twitched, and he could feel the cool metallic restraints at his wrists.

His skin was chilled, goose bumps rising and the silence was broken by the loud shrill of the alarm.

His eyes snapped open to see the yellow lights swirling.

_Intruder is in the building_. He looked down to see four soldiers were in front of him with their guns raised, each one of them strategically placed. The area was cold, but he couldn't feel it, smoke made the room hazy and his eyes flickered above him to see the window that was shadowed, but there were _someone_ in there...he could _feel_ it.

_Break free._ His index finger of his right hand lifted and a static blue light travelled up, connecting with the restraint and it opened.

He smiled, and his face felt strange. When had he smiled last? Before _she_ died...

"Do you think he is awake?" one of the soldiers gestured their head in his direction and he stayed perfectly still, letting them believe what they wanted to believe.

"The docs have him on strong drugs-" **Two** started

"-Strong enough to knock out a Krogan-" T**hree** interrupted.

"-and assured me that he shouldn't be wakening up any time soon," **Two** finished, tone patient with a tinge of annoyance.

"If you say so," O**ne** returned, not sounding reassured at all.

_Smart man_. The alarm turned orange, causing the soldiers to stiffen. **Four** looked up before looking at the others, who was looking back at **Four**. The leader.

With quick hand gestures, ones that he recognised, the leader told them to get into their places and keep their mouth shut until they discovered what was going on.

**Four** moved into place in front of him and he almost felt sorry for the soldiers. Maybe he should not hurt them...much.

Nevertheless, they were blocking his way and he wanted out. However, he was patient and he could wait for his chance. Something told him it would not be long.

A crash nearby caught the soldiers' attention and he glanced in the direction almost lazily, he briefly wondered for a moment where the sense of urgency he once honed to perfection had gone. Had they robbed him of his fight or flight instinct? Would he no longer be effective as the soldier he once was?

There was shouting then another crash. Mechanical barking of the FENRIS Mechs – must be desperate if they are loosening the dogs already. Sounds of explosions and gunfire had the soldiers shifting uncertainly toward the door, each looking at the other for answers.

He shifted his stance slowly, getting ready. He was ready, his biotics already humming under his skin, encasing him in that warm buzzing feeling that gave him a high like no other.

More crashing and yelling caused the soldiers to straighten up. It sounded close. **Four** brought their hand up to their earpiece.

"Damn it! What the **hell** is going on out there?!" **Four** barked.

_Time to go_. He broke his other restraint and the alarm turned red, shrieking continuously.

"Subject Alpha is loose!" **One** yelled and the other three spun around, raising their guns but it was too late.

He lifted up his hand, a rush of blue glow erupted around him, crashing outward, and the soldiers flew off their feet, slamming backward into the wall.

_No regrets_. He needed to move - the medic inside him wanted to go to the soldiers, to check he had not killed them - but no time, he needed to go.

Someone was coming for him and he would be damned if he was caught. He turned and let loose of another charged wave. It crashed into the wall, revealing a new path and he took it, darting into the laboratory.

He faltered at the sight of the beds and the tables of syringes, and scalpels, and restraints. The memories of the doctors hovering above him, trying to assure him they were doing it for the good of humanity swam into his mind and he shook it away roughly, breathing heavily.

Moving on now shaky legs, he unlocked the door and stepped out into the darkened hallway. Sparks flickered from the broken lights. Blood splatter stained the wall, accompanied by scorched marks of where explosions occurred.

_Looks like someone has an affinity for destruction_. He chuckled to himself mirthlessly before continuing. This was no time to remember **her**, not while _she_ continued to haunt his every movement, questioned his every action.

_She_ was seeped in his skin, left **her** mark on him and he would forever wear _her_ in his heart, there was no getting rid of a woman like **her**, no matter how far death took _her_ from him.

He ran, his bare feet slapping the tiled floor, ducking and weaving amongst the rubble that tried to block his escape.

He reached a large room only to hear gunfire. On instinct, he raised his hand and a blue barrier formed around him, blocking the bullets.

He raised his eyes to see the soldiers on the high level above him and growled. He drew his barrier in, raising his other hand and let it go with a crackle. It exploded, catching the soldiers and raising them high into the air before he pulled his hands back.

Following the momentum, the soldiers went flying over his head, their cries loud before the sounds of more shooting drowned them. This time it was accompanied chaos...then the communication system came to life with a crackle.

"Subject Alpha is loose! I repeat: Subject Alpha is loose! All unit, subdue him!"

"Shit, isn't that the dossier we were meant to pick up?" a male voice asked, his voice muffle but he could hear the other man as if they were in the same room together.

"What the hell is going on here?" a woman demanded. "It's a simple pick up, why are they being hostile?"

They were close, he could sense it yet he had to stop for a moment, closing his eyes. There was a familiar...aura...almost as if...

His eyes snapped open and he continued. He was losing his mind; they had drugged him too much, put him in cold-sleep too many times. He needed to get out before he fully snapped, and if he was going to snap, they were not going to enjoy the results.

But he sure as hell would.

_Breathe_. He took in a deep breath, slowly releasing it before pushing another door open and entering the hallway.

Mostly unscathed, he got lucky. Maybe he would not bump into anyone down here, the distant sounds of gunfire still behind him but it sounded like he was moving away from it. Good.

He quickly but quietly moved his way down the hallway, his eyes sharp for any signs of enemies, his blood rushing, his heart thudding and his biotics humming softly.

It was strange, he had been strong before he came here but it felt like he was stronger, that they had changed him somehow.

His hand went to the back of his head, his fingers brushing against the nape and he felt his amp. His fingertips tracing the pattern, he could discern that he was still using an L-2 Biotic Amp.

So - his biotics itself had gotten stronger...interesting. He would not mind getting his hands on his reports, to find out just what the doctors did to him while he was between cold-sleep and the heavy drugs that could knock out a Krogan.

He felt good, and he was not sure if that was a good thing.

There was a tapping sound and he stopped in his tracks, cocking his head and closing his eyes to discern what the sound was and where it was coming from. A moment later, his eyes opened and he ran just as the wall behind him exploded inward.

"Subject Alpha is on the run!" They must be tracking him somehow. He flung his hand backward, sending another blue wave of energy and he heard screams and shouts but he did not stop, he could not stop, he was near freedom and he intended to grab it with both hands.

He owed it to **her** to escape, to find a way to move on with his life, because he had no doubt that she would come back and kill him for fucking it up.

_Why would I kill you?_ He breathed heavily, shaking his head. _You were a reason for me to live, to fight_.

_She is_ dead and he needed to accept that, no matter what his mind may say.

The door in front of him was heavy steel and he knew that he had no chance pushing it open. He lifted his hand, putting all of his energy into the biotic push.

The door flew off its hinges, flying through the air and crushed the group of mechs that had taken up the centre of the room.

There was stunned silence for a moment as he burst out of the hallway before the guards snapped into action, shouting orders and raising their guns.

His hand came up, his barrier brilliant blue as bullets flew hard and fast at him.

"I said subdue him!" the voice shouted over the communication system. "We need him for our experiments! Do not kill him! I repeat, do not kill-who the hell are you?!"

Kaidan let out a scream as he launched his barrier outward. The soldiers yelled as they were caught up in the blast, falling off the high rise and falling on to the floor, the ones on the floor were lifted up, slamming into walls and crates.

Breathing heavily, he brought a hand to his head, throbbing starting up behind his eyes, as wetness dripped from his nose. With his other hand, he wiped it away and spotted the scarlet red liquid over his fingers, and groaned.

_Remember your control_. He gritted his teeth, bunching his hands into fists before gunshots registered over the communicator.

"Find him," it did not belong to the leader. It belonged to the woman he heard before. _A simple pick up._

They were coming for him. Pushing his pain back, he started running again; he needed a way off the facility, away from this planet, away from his pain. But where could he go?

He once said she made him feel human, and she took him to her bed, found her way into his heart and he lost her, leaving behind a hollow heart.

The sirens were beginning to shriek, causing his head to throb insistently but he recognised the hallway he was now running down.

It was the same hallway he walked when he arrived here, the spaceport was nearby; he could feel it.

He reached the hanger, darting in and saw the familiar sight of the large viewing window that revealed the ships. Shuttles and small ships in docking stations further down, he could use one of them to escape.

He had to be careful...he could not let them track...

_No way._

He stopped in his tracks when he spotted the ship beyond the glass. He recognised her, had seen her two years ago, had travelled within her, found love within her.

_No – she had been destroyed, you watched her go down in flames. __**You**__ watched __**her**__ go down in flames._

A gun shot made his head snap around to see the soldier, who had attempted to sneak up on him with a knife, fall to the ground and he tensed.

"_Finally_," a female voice spoke up, breathing heavily. "Who knew a simple pick up would turn into a chase."

"You okay?" he stiffened at the sound of that voice. No matter how long it had been, no matter how long the doctors drugged and put him in cold sleep, he would _never_ forget that voice.

He turned around to see _her_ standing there, dressed in armour and armed to the teeth – as usual.

Her grey-blue eyes narrowed when she saw his face before they widened in shock and her hands, still holding her pistol, lowered sharply. Those soft pink lips he had dreamt of parted in disbelief and she shook her head causing her dark brown hair to ripple with her movement.

"K-_Kaidan_?" she stepped forward.

_It's not __**her**__._ He growled and flared blue.

TBC

One thing – does Kaidan seem out of character? Alternatively, could I use this and pass it off as an ME3-Kaidan after he discovered Sanctuary (cause – no lie – he was kinda hot when he got all dark like...)

Gah – I really need to figure out what the hell I am doing when I am writing.


	2. Chapter 2: Loss of Blood Run Cold

(Sorry, this took longer to write)

Chapter 2: Loss of Blood Runs Cold

"Do we know anything of the latest pick up?" Garrus Vakarian asked. They all were currently in the war room within the SR-2, Normandy, getting a briefing over the newest dossier that the Illusive Man had forwarded.

"He is a biotic," Miranda Lawson spoke up from her corner of the table, flipping through the file. "It looks like he had been admitted to the Clinic nearly two years ago."

"Could someone please tell me why the Illusive Man would risk someone from the Clinic?" Jacob Taylor asked, placing his hands on the table. "Isn't there a risk of this guy snapping?"

"The Illusive Man wants the best," Miranda reminded.

"The best of what?" countered Jacob, "The insane?"

"Jacob..." Miranda shook her head.

"Enough," Commander Jane Shepard stepped up causing everyone to look at her. "The Illusive Man wants us to pick him up; we'll pick him up and deal with the situation then." She held up her hand. "I know he is an unknown, Jacob, but it is _your_ boss who wants us to pick him up and I'd rather deal with a potential danger now than later."

"Very well, Commander," Jacob stood down. Shepard nodded before she turned to face Miranda.

"Any details?" she asked the operative. Miranda shook her head; Shepard could see the small pinch in Miranda's forehead. She was not happy with the lack of details. It spoke of how well she had gotten to know the Officer.

"There is surprisingly little amount of details regarding the subject. He is an L-2-"

"Great," Jacob muttered and got a glare.

"-And his name is Jared Shenko." Shepard froze at the name.

"_Shenko_?" she asked her voice faint and Miranda nodded.

"Are you okay, Shepard?" Shepard smiled, shrugging it off before giving her a nod.

"I'll be fine, just an old joke," she told the woman before casting a glance in Garrus' direction. The knowing look in his eyes tore at her heart and she looked away.

Two months, and she _still_ did not know where Kaidan was. Alliance was strict, saying it is classified – especially now that she is with Cerberus. Even The Illusive Man was being evasive, saying Kaidan's record was surprisingly buried.

_Bastards_, if she finds out that he was hurt and they kept it from her; she was going to hurt a whole lot of people in return.

_Focus, Commander, check your six._ She took a deep breath, remembering her place. Now was not the time to lose her focus.

"Since this is a Cerberus facility we will be entering, we are going to need to be cautious," Shepard told them.

"Really?" Miranda asked. Shepard could see the slight surprise but it was mostly resignation. Maybe now she was getting that Shepard was not going to trust Cerberus, no matter what people told her. Shepard nodded.

"We will be splitting up the team instead of all of us going in. I don't want to risk setting anything off," she told them.

"We follow your orders, Commander," Jacob saluted her and she nodded.

"Miranda, Zaeed and Mordin are with me. Miranda, you are a Cerberus Officer so you will be able to bypass any red tape they would have. Mordin is also a doctor as well as being a scientist so he will be able to help decide the best way to deal with Jared. Zaeed is coming as my back-up."

Miranda arched an eyebrow, surprised. "Jacob, Garrus and Grunt – you stay here and make sure no-one tries to take our only way out of here.

"You got it, Shepard," Garrus nodded.

"You think we will face resistance?" Miranda asked and Shepard could see she was genuinely curious. Shepard just smiled wryly.

"I think all the Cerberus facilities I have been in, none of them turned out so good for them."

"Good thinking," Mordin agreed as he and Zaeed left the room to gear up. Miranda followed them a moment later, giving Shepard a nod.

Garrus, Jacob and Grunt also left with the Krogan sending her a petulant pout and she was quick to cover up her smile. She shook her head fondly before she spotted Kasumi still standing there, her arms crossed.

"I want you to do what you do best," she told Kasumi, who smile turned sly. "Get me all the files you can on this 'Jared Shenko', and yes – you may steal to your heart's content."

"You're the best, Shep," Kasumi chirped as she made her way over to the door.

"Kasumi," she stopped and looked over her shoulder. "Nothing you can't fence or anything that you think is worthless." Kasumi made a face.

"Fine," the thief huffed as she continued her way out of the room.

Shepard watched her go before she allowed herself a smile, shaking her head. These guys were different, but they sure did their jobs with passion.

_I got your back, Commander._ Her smile faded as she thought about Kaidan. She missed him, and it was stupid but he had managed to worm his way into her heart, even before she took him to her bed. His smiles and the way he would stumble over his words when talking to her, the way he was confident in himself in battle.

He had her back, and now, she was left defenceless.

With a shake of her head, she straightened up and walked out of the meeting room. She had a new member to pick up, even if his surname made her broken heart crack even further.

~_LOBRC_~

Shepard looked around at the walls of the sterilise hallway and she had to suppress a shudder, it brought back memories she did not want to revisit.

Steeling her spine, she took point, heading toward the receptionist, who was eyeing their weapons with wariness. Not that Shepard could blame her; she had a feeling that guns were not really a norm within this facility.

"May I help you?" she asked.

"Miranda Lawson," Miranda stepped forward, showing the receptionist her ID. Recognition flashed on the other woman's face. "I need to speak with Dr. Malon."

"Of course, Miss Lawson. One moment please."

Shepard took the opportunity to look around, seeing the people being lead to their rooms or, to what seems like, a centre room.

Curious, she stepped forward and peered into the room. Different ages, different ethnics – yet, all human.

Not a surprise, of course, considering what Cerberus stood for. Advancing Humanity. Nevertheless, to see all those people...it gave her the chills and she wondered if they truly knew what they had gotten themselves in for by coming here for help.

Hell, she hoped that they were helping these people; maybe Cerberus could prove that they did have a good side to all the darkness she had seen within the Hell.

The sound of footsteps broke her out of her thoughts and she turned to the see the doctor walking toward them.

He looked to be late forties to early fifties yet he carried himself with authority. He had dark grey hair with fleck of black and steely green eyes. She felt an instant dislike and it startled her. She usually waited to get to know a person first.

However, this man before her, there was something about him that set her teeth on edge. Maybe he reminded of her Wilson – the doctor who had helped to bring her back only to try to kill her.

"Miss Lawson," the Doctor stopped in front of them. "I was not expecting you today." His green eyes caught sight of Shepard and they widened. She resisted the urge to step backward. "Commander Shepard?" he looked at Miranda. "You succeeded?"

Huh, guess Cerberus trying to bring her back was not news amongst those who worked at Cerberus.

_How nice for them._

"Yes, I did," Miranda, told him with a nod before Shepard caught the small quirk of Miranda's eyebrows. "Did the Illusive Man not tell you we were coming? You have a biotic that the Illusive Man feels would instrumental to our mission."

"No, we did not receive notice," the doctor told her and Miranda nodded. However, Shepard could see she was not convinced.

"Very well, we are here to collect Jared Shenko," she told him and Shepard watched as he paled slightly before his eyes narrowed and his lips tightened into a thin line.

"Are you sure?" he asked. "He is one of our dangerous patients. He needs time to recover and a mission would surely be detrimental to his mental health." Miranda crossed her arms.

"Dr Malon, the Illusive Man himself sent us the dossier. Are you telling me that you plan on disobeying him?"

Shepard watched with amusement as Miranda glared at the doctor for not following orders.

"Miss Lawson," he pleaded but she straightened up and moved in closer.

"Dr Malon, release Jared Shenko or report to our boss. Your choice." The doctor reluctantly conceded.

"I will get the release forms," he told them before turning around and walking away.

Shepard looked at Miranda, who was watching the doctor.

"What's wrong?"

"The Illusive Man wouldn't have sent us here if there was going to be a problem with picking up our newest member. I don't like it."

"Do you think it's a trap?" Miranda shook her head. "You think there is something going on here, don't you?" Miranda bit her bottom lip before she looked at Shepard before she slowly nodded.

"I hate to admit it, but I think you're beginning to be right about not having a good time with Cerberus facilities."

"That was something I really didn't want to hear, Miranda," Shepard sighed as she rubbed her forehead. "Let's just see what the doctor does before we jump to conclusion." Miranda looked like she wanted to argue but conceded.

Shepard let out a sigh of relief as Miranda turned away from her. She was beginning to feel jittery, restless. A part of her just wanted to storm through the facility and grab Jared before hauling him back to the Normandy so they could leave this place behind.

Moreover, she wondered why. She never did anything like that, wanting to storm a place. She was a thinker, always thinking up a way to get her team out safe, ensuring she had backups to those plans.

So...what was so different this time around?

"Sorry about that," Dr. Malon had returned. "If you'll follow me, I will take you to Jared's room."

"Thank you," Miranda gave him a short nod as all four of them fell into line, following the doctor. Shepard found her hand drifting closer to her pistol, just to be on the safe side. "Could you tell us about Jared? His Dossier was surprisingly light on the details."

"I assume it said he was an L-2?" Dr. Malon asked and got a nod. "He is one of our strongest L-2. In fact, we were to surprise to see an L-2 spike as high as he does. However, he had suffered a trauma nearly two years ago that caused him to become unstable. He was referred here for help."

"Is he still unstable?" Shepard asked. She did not miss the way his shoulders tensed, and sharing a look with Miranda told her that the Operative had seen the same thing.

"He has his good and bad days, like we all do, Commander," she frowned, not liking the response. "This is why I still protest over him being taken out of our care."

"Relax Doc," Zaeed told him.

"We have an excellent Doctor aboard our ship, Dr. Malon," Miranda told him. "She had dealt with L-2 before."

"Would like reports," Mordin added. "Good indicator of how to transfer him."

"Of course," Dr. Malon opened his folder and pulled out a file, handing it to the Salarian. "This is our file on Jared, his emotional state, his behaviour and how we dealt with each situation."

Mordin flicked through the file as the doctor came to a stop in front of a door. "He is in the very far end room. I need to arrange for his release so please wait for me outside his room." He walked away.

"Nice man," Zaeed remarked before looking at Shepard. "We should be on our guard."

Relieved to know that she was not the only one who felt that way, she gave him a nod before looking at Miranda.

"Shall we?" she gestured toward the door. Miranda opened it to reveal another hallway but this time, windows lined the walls instead of tiles.

Walking pass them show them to be medical rooms. Patients lying on medical beds, doctors hovering over them.

"Look at all these people," Shepard murmured, shaking her head. "Did they really volunteer for these treatments?"

"Restraints," Mordin noticed as he peered closer into one room. "Drugs, possibly to keep their biotics under control."

"Wait – _what_?" Shepard looked at him and he looked back at her. "I thought this was a Clinic, you know, where people need help." Mordin shook his head as he looked back into the room and she followed his gaze.

"Under heavy sedation, thick metal restraints," he pointed out. "Not a place for helping." Shepard could not help but watch in horror as the doctors turned the woman over and check her implant.

Now that she thought about it, the newest member was a biotic. The woman before her was a biotic...were they all biotic.

"Did Cerberus set up a front?" Shepard asked as she turned around to look at Miranda. "Did you tell people this was a Clinic to help those who need it only for you guys to do _experiments_ on them?!"

"This is gonna be interesting," Zaeed crossed his arms, leaning against the wall as he watched them but Shepard took no notice.

"No," Miranda exclaimed before she bit her bottom lip. "It didn't start off that way," she tried to explain. "It _was_ a Clinic that helped people who needed it. But once the Illusive Man discovered that it was mostly biotics – especially L-2 – he thought it would give us a better idea of how biotic works and, maybe..."

"Advance the human race," Shepard finished off, disgusted how everything seem to revolve getting humanity a bigger piece of the pie. They could not just be happy to get a place; they had to force themselves into getting one of the top places.

"Good to see Cerberus is still the same," Mordin quipped.

"Good to see that Cerberus is still willing to do whatever it takes for humanity to get the top spot," Shepard muttered sarcastically before she spun on her heels and walked. She did not even look back to see if they were following her.

She was beginning to be sick of Cerberus and their stupid experiments. She had enough of it back the first time when she had been searching for Saren. Knowing she was now in the beast of the belly was already something that was hard to swallow, never mind seeing the experiments before her.

It did not take long for them to reach the last door. However, to their surprise, it was locked and there was no sign of the doctor.

"Er..." Shepard back to see the windows had now being blacked out and the doors were now sporting the red locks. "Oh brilliant."

"I'll try the terminal," Miranda was already entering her user-name and password only to be denied. Frowning, she tried again only to get the same result.

Suddenly, the communication system came to life and the lights darkened.

"I am sorry, Miss Lawson, but Jared Shenko is too important for us to give up. Therefore, I am afraid that I am going to have to ask you to surrender and allow the guards to escort you back to your ship.

"Wha-" Miranda was cut off as communications was shut down and she growled. "Oh this is ridiculous!" Miranda snapped as she punched the terminal "What the hell is going on here?" The alarm blared, yellow lights flashing and Shepard rubbed her forehead.

"My advice?" Zaeed spoke up. "We should get a move on if we wish to grab the package – preferably before they send mechs and guards after us."

Shepard nodded, her hand going to her earpiece.

"EDI, you there?"

"Yes Commander."

"I need a route to Jared Shenko. Doctors are not willing to give us the package."

"One moment." Shepard's Omni-tool blinked. She opened it up and received the map EDI had sent her. "I have highlighted the best way to get to Jared Shenko. However records states Mr Shenko is currently in solitary."

Shepard frowned, this was not sounding good. She looked at the others to see that Miranda was looking conflicted while Zaeed and Mordin stared at her, waiting for their orders.

"Let's follow the map, maybe we can get an idea of what the hell is going on while we are at it."

They agreed and un-holstered their weapons, nothing was being left to chance this time. The doctor had it, and he blew it and she had a feeling she was going to be meeting him along the way. Hopefully she would get the chance to punch his lights out.

The followed the path EDI had set out for them, meeting surprisingly low resistance and Shepard had to wonder if they had cameras installed before dismissing it. It was Cerberus; cameras were everywhere.

They reached their destination but the door was locked.

"Alright, keep an eye on my back. I don't want anyone shooting me," Shepard warned them, getting onto her knees as she brought up her Omni-tool. She waved it over the lock causing the holograph to separate from the door and got to working.

"You _do_ know what are you doing, right?" Zaeed asked.

"I did bring her back, Zaeed," Miranda reminded him sharply. "She was the best before she died, she is _still _the best."

"Oh Miranda, I always knew you cared," Shepard remarked slyly as she scanned for the right codes, slowly connecting pins to access the next code.

"You _do_ know what you are doing, right?" Miranda repeated Zaeed's question getting laugher from the mercenary and a low growl from Shepard.

"Yes, I know what I am doing. Alliance taught me, Tali and Kaidan," his name came out as a whisper before she shook it away, "helped to refine my knowledge." The lock turned green and she smirked. "And I win, so suck on that."

"Nice going lass," Zaeed commended as Shepard got up from her knees, pulling out her gun. All four of them got into position before Miranda opened the door.

They stepped into the darkened room, switching on their lights as they cleared the room, making sure there were no other surprises before Shepard frowned, looking at her Omni-tool while Mordin switched on the light. "EDI says this is where Jared is being held." She looked around the room. "But I don't see anything to indicate anyone was being held in this room.

"How about here?" Mordin asked from his spot near the large window. Shepard walked over to see a large room before them. There were four soldiers patrolling and a large cryo-tube in the middle. It was open and she could make out the shadowed outline of a human being in the mist.

"Is that Jared?" Miranda asked as she peered out of the window and downward.

Something was wrong, she could feel it but she could not put her finger on why it felt wrong.

"Is that a Cryo-tube?" there was a strange sensation tugging at her before she brushed it aside. This was not the time for strange feelings.

"Yes," Miranda frowned. "Why on earth would they put him under? This was never mentioned in any files, or his dossier."

"My guess they found themselves dealing with something dangerous and couldn't control it," Zaeed spoke up, looking at one of the terminal. "Looks like this thing sets him free."

"Can't just press button," Mordin spoke up, moving over next to Zaeed. "Need to check his pulse, his temperature. Could kill him if unchecked."

"Can you check on him from up here?" Shepard as she turned to look at the doctor to see he was already at the terminal, clicking away. "Is it even possible?"

"Looks like observation," Mordin muttered. "Experiments conducted and they watched from here." She felt sickened as she looked back down.

"Why would they do this?" she pressed a hand to the window, wishing she could touch him. With a gasp, she pulled herself away from the window, looking at her hand and wondering what the hell was going on with her.

It was his surname, which is what was throwing her off balance. It was a reminder of the old days. It was the only explanation to why she was not acting like herself. It was that stupid little joke Ashley had made, back on the SR-1, when they had been chasing after Saren.

_"You know, you and the LT have pretty good surnames," the Soldier remarked with a devious grin, causing everyone to look in her direction. Shepard was confused, looking at Kaidan to see he was looking in her direction with an adorable confused look._

_ She really should not be thinking of her Lieutenant as adorable, that was a dangerous path to be even thinking about toeing._

_ "What are you talking about?" Tali spoke up, eager as ever to learn more traits that are human. Shepard could not help but smile in the Quarian's direction; she was adorable._

_ "Shepard and Alekno – Shenko," Ashley explained._

_ "Oh," Shepard had to bury her face into her hands. Nevertheless, it did not stop the confused 'what' coming from the non-human members of their team and she pitied yet envied them._

_ "It's a thing back on earth," Ashley explained. Shepard could not even watch the scene, too horrified. "If they ever wish to get married low-key, then Shenko is the best name to go under."_

_ "Ashley!" Shepard groaned as she glared at the soldier, who just grinned mischievously right back and Shepard rolled her eyes._

_ She knew that she and Kaidan were not exactly being subtle about their feelings but there were still regs, especially with her being his Commander. In addition, they still did not quite know where it was going – it was not as if they could just sit down and talk about it. Not now._

_ "Commander, we are nearing the next planet, estimated time – 15 minutes," Joker's voice came over the coms._

_ "Thanks Joker," she glared at her team members. "Get ready; we'll be hitting the ground soon."_

_ "Yes Commander," all of them said; Ashley and Kaidan saluting before all but Kaidan left._

_ "I need to think up a suitable punishment for our Gunnery Chief," Shepard muttered, looking down at her hands unable to look at Kaidan._

_ He must be mortified; he had wanted to keep their flirting on the down low so they would not get into trouble._

_ "Hey," his hand was on her shoulder and she looked up at him to see that small-amused smile on his lips. "Our kids would be lucky to have a cool name like Shenko."_

_ "Kaidan!" she covered her face again as she blushed but she could not stop the smile as Kaidan laughed._

That had been before everything had been shot to hell. She came out of her thoughts, still looking at her hand before she clenched it into a fist. She had left Ashley on Vimire with the bomb, saving Kaidan and the team he had been assigned to work with.

They had found out that Saren had been working with the Reapers and they were trying to come in their back door by activating the Citadel.

They had managed to stop it, saving the Galaxy. However, at the same time, she wondered if she really did save the Galaxy that day – or just bought them time.

"Commander, we have a problem," Zaeed spoke up, drawing her to face the mercenary. "He's awake."

"What?" Miranda darted forward, peering over Mordin's shoulder at the screen before she pointed at something. "Is that correct?"

"Yes," Mordin nodded. "Previous reports indicated same amount."

"He shouldn't even be awake," Miranda looked at Shepard with disbelief. "The last time I saw something like this was you."

Shepard arched her eyebrow at that. "You kept being immune to the previous dose we had to increase it each time. It looks like they kept it the same level so he must have built a resistance to the dosage but they didn't keep an eye on him."

"Unprofessional," Mordin tutted, shaking his head. "Sloppy work."

"Let's get him out of here," Shepard ordered them. "We need to get off this facility as soon as possible."

Mordin reached for the button to release the patient but the doors slid open and guards stepped forward, their guns firing.

"Take them out!" Shepard ordered as they all dived for cover. Taking the risk, she slammed her hand down on the button, the alarm shrieked higher, the yellow lights giving way to orange, and she swore under her breath.

Why could something not just go simple for once? All she wanted to do was pick up their newest member but it seemed like Illusive Man had passed forward the wrong dossier.

_Alternatively, he discovered something that would be useful for the mission, Commander._

Either way, she did not have the time to speculate, they had to find a way to get out of the clinic in one piece, and hopefully with their newest member.

With that in mind, she reached up; tapping the side of her earpiece and blue visor of her sentry interface appeared over her eyes. With quick fingers over her Omni-tool, data showed up on the visor and she steeled herself.

With a deep breath, she popped out of cover, shooting each guard before she looked at Zaeed. He gave her a nod and she ducked back down just as he threw a grenade over his cover and it clinked.

For a moment, there was silence before the guards started panicking and there was an explosion. They stayed down for a moment longer before Zaeed peered over his cover.

"Clear!" Zaeed told them and they all stood up, taking a deep breath as they recovered from the sudden attack when the lights changed from yellow to red and they knew they were in deeper trouble.

"Subject Alpha is loose!" they heard a tinny voice and they immediately spun around to see the figure lift up his hand, a rush of blow glow erupted around him and crashed outward.

"Holy shit!" Zaeed shouted as the explosion took the soldiers off their feet and rocked the structures underneath the observation room.

They stumbled as they tried to keep their balance. Shepard grabbed Miranda by the arm as she almost fell to the ground. She looked to see Zaeed and Mordin was holding onto the table before the rocking stopped and they all exchanged looks of disbelief.

"Commander, I am reading that Mr. Shenko is currently on the move. Do you wish me to send his tracking details to your interface?"

"Please, EDI," she told the AI, glad that Cerberus had built her into the Normandy. A heartbeat later, the map showed up and the man was a red blinking dot "I got him, thank you EDI."

"You're welcome, however, my sensors indicate there are more guards on your way, and they are attempting to subdue Mr. Shenko. You may wish to move fast."

"She doesn't say," Zaeed remarked sarcastically as all of them moved toward the doorway. It was time to collect their newest member.

They made quick work of the guards that had been sent in their way while marvelling over the destruction the biotic had left in his wake that Shepard had to shake her head, bewildered over the amount of damage.

Even Kaidan had not been able to deal damage like this back on their chase for Saren and she wondered if the newest member was truly an L-2 or they have not downplayed his amp in a bid to do experiments on him.

"He's an_ L-2_?!" Shepard demanded to Mordin as they entered a surgical room. The blood on the tiled floors made her feel sick.

"Experiments indicate rise in biotic abilities," Mordin explained as they ducked down another cover as more guards came out. "If given the right motivation, they can become powerful."

"But will he be able to keep it under control?" Shepard asked, remembering Kaidan telling her about his implant. He had been one of the lucky ones; he only suffered migraines thanks to his implant.

She did not even know if this person was even stable when it came to his biotic abilities. Why the hell did Illusive Man send his dossier? He must know something that he had not told them.

Not that it would be much of a surprise, she had a feeling the man liked to keep his cards close to his chest, dealing them whenever they suited his time-frame or purpose.

While they were still moving, taking down hostiles, the communications came to life.

"Subject Alpha is loose! I repeat: Subject Alpha is loose!" the voice said. Dr. Malon; now, there is a voice she was not going to forget.

"Shit, isn't that the dossier we were meant to pick up?" Zaeed asked.

"What the hell is going on here?" Miranda demanded as she sent out a blue wave, catching the guards and stripping their armour allowing Zaeed and Shepard to shoot them. "It's a simple pick up, why are they being hostile?"

"It sounds like this Jared is a little more special than we've been let on," Shepard informed her as she ducked down behind the crate, popping out the heat sink and adding a fresh clip. "Sounds like another facility have gone 'rogue'."

"But the Illusive Man sent us here, he sent us the dossier! Surely he would have been able to tell that his people aren't going to give us someone he wants us to have?"

"Maybe your Illusive Man isn't as in control as he likes to think, or maybe this is something he predicted," Zaeed shot back at the Officer. "Face it sweetheart, your boss isn't exactly a nice man."

"Zaeed, let's not piss off the woman who can destroy us with her mind – especially when are in the middle of battle and she can hit you with friendly fire," Shepard warned him while giving a warning look at Miranda as she glared at the mercenary.

"Just saying what's on my mind," Zaeed informed Shepard with a shrug and she rolled her eyes.

She stopped shooting when she felt the same feeling she had back at the cryo-tube. She had to close her eyes and remind herself to breathe before she shook her head, shaking it off.

Now wasn't the time to lose her mind, she needed to keep going, to get this man and get them off the clinic before Cerberus did something stupid like trying to blow them all up.

"It's Subject Alpha – take him out!" they could hear the soldiers barking orders and Shepard frowned.

"Are they trying to recapture him or kill him?" Shepard demanded. "I swear people never know what they are doing!"

"Really? You want to have this conversation **now**?" Miranda demanded as both of them popped out from behind the cover and used overload at the same time on the mech dogs.

The combined powers were too much for them and they exploded, catching the guards behind them in the blast. Both women ducked back down.

"When is it a good time to have a conversation about how people can be idiots?" Shepard asked as she summoned her drone. It darted around her in a circle before she pointed in the direction of the doorway.

It followed her commands and found a guard hiding behind the door. With a quick zap, the guard was jolted out of his hiding spot and received a gunshot to the shoulder as a result, causing him to go down.

"How about – why are people still convinced they can take on _Commander Fucking Shepard_ and still think they'll come out in one piece?" Zaeed joined in the conversation as they moved closer to the doorway.

"Fascinating species, humanity," Mordin agreed. "A wonderful mixture of geniuses and idiots. Would love to perform tests."

"Just keep those scalpels away from me, doc, and we'll get along just fine," Zaeed warned the Salarian.

"Let's keep the talks of tests to a minimum until we are away from the base," Shepard told them. It did not feel right to be joking about something like that in a place like this. It rubbed her up the wrong way and she wondered why.

Zaeed chucked a grenade over the cover. It clinked a few times before it exploded.

Rubble and dusts fell on them as they slowly peered over the edges of their cover to see the path was clear and Zaeed allowed himself a satisfied smug smirk.

"Nice going," Shepard commended. "Come guys, we need to get a move on!" She got out from cover and started running with her team right behind her.

They reached a clean hallway and Shepard looked around, confused and wondered if they took a wrong turn when she looked at her map and saw they were on the other side of the spaceport. Relieved they were nearly there, she made to go down the hallway when EDI spoke up.

"Commander, I detect Dr. Malon is in the room two doors down, if you were to disable him, he would be unable to pass on further orders therefore sending his guards into chaos."

She had to be impressed with EDI. Cerberus, and the Illusive Man, may have not intended her to be like this but Shepard could not deny that she was extremely useful.

"Noted," she gestured down the hallway and to the door. The others nodded before surrounding the doors. She lifted up three fingers and slowly counted down before Zaeed opened the door and all of them filed inward to see a young doctor watching the cameras with frustration on his face.

"I said subdue him!" the young man shouted. "We need him for our experiments! Do not kill him! I repeat, do not-" he turned to face them. "Who the hell are you?!"

A gunshot to the chest silenced him and he fell to the ground before Shepard spotted the doctor.

"Hello Doctor," she greeted as he raised his gun but Miranda was quicker, using her biotic to lift the man off the ground before slamming him down. He lay there and Shepard gave her an impressed nod before Miranda stepped forward to look at the security cams.

"Find him," Miranda ordered the security bots and they worked like crazy to show that he was heading for the spaceport with the numerous bodies surrounding him.

"Good to see that he can handle himself in a fire-fight with just his biotics," Zaeed whistled before he gestured his head toward the door. "What do you say that we go and head him off before he grabs a ship?"

He got nods of agreements and they headed out, missing the shimmer near the files. Shepard however looked in the direction and gave it a warning look.

"Time is nearly up – get back to the ship," she ordered before she ran after her team-members.

They reached the reception and Shepard pushed herself on faster, needing to catch up with their biotic member. They had come too far just to lose him now.

Shepard spotted him first, he was staring out of the window when the soldier came out of nowhere, a knife aimed high and she reacted instinctively, shooting the soldier.

The man jerked in the direction of the soldier, watching as he dropped down to the floor and Shepard took a deep breath. Damn, that had been close.

"_Finally_," Miranda grated out, breathing heavily. "Who knew a simple pick up could turn into a chase." Shepard ignored her.

"You okay?" she asked the man who had yet to turn around. He was shirtless, with only black pants on. He did not even have shoes and it made her wonder if it was a ploy to stop him from running when he had the chance.

They obviously did not think it through.

He slowly turned around and she took in the sight. Chin length black curly hair, rounding around his ears and covering most of his forehead, there was dark stubble upon his jaw and his dark eyes were staring right at hers.

She narrowed her eyes, he was familiar...too familiar...her eyes wandered down to his lips and she spotted the scar – _that scar_ – and her eyes snapped back up to his.

No...No way...was no way in hell this happening!

She shook her head, her arms dropping as she stared at her lover – if he could even still be called that – looking right back at her as if she was a ghost.

"K-_Kaidan_?" she whispered.

She watched in horror as Kaidan suddenly shifted to battle stance, a stance she had seen so many times during their search for Saren, he growled.

Then her vision turned blue and her heart froze.

The End/TBC?

Warned you guys

(It has been a while since I left a cliff-hanger though – Not sure if I should cackle or just run like hell...)


End file.
